05/30/2008

///Remember those rumors and reports of Prince covering Radiohead's "Creep" at Coachella? Well like everything worthwhile and not, a video ended up on YouTube, but the Prince people had it removed immediately. Now Radiohead is demanding that Prince allow for the video to be availalbe. After all it is Radiohead's song to block. The dispute is yet to be resolved. [Thanks, Billboard]

///For all The Germs' fans we get at the website, a biopic on the band will be hitting theaters in August. The Chicago screening of What We Do is Secret will be on August 15th - the perfect back to school party. [Thanks, BrooklyVegan]

///Get ready for the Pogues box-set. The box-set Just Look Them In the Eye and Say ... Poguemahone is due to be released June 17th in the UK - no word about this side of the pond. The set includes 4 discs of unreleased material, work with Joe Strummer, and hard to find Pogue tracks. [Thanks, Aversion]

///Do you need NPR to tell you everything? Sometimes I feel that way. Either way, here is NPR to tell you about emo.

Radius (nee Ramon Norwood) is an innovative sample-based artist from Chicago, bringing “univerSoul boom bap 4th dimension sounds” from his MPC digital sampler...Neighborhood Suicide is his first official release, out now from The Secret Life of Sound. For each instrumental track there is also a story or explanation given in the liner notes as to what this part of the city means to Radius and why it is on the album.

Navigating effortlessly through a dizzying array of styles, Konrad is an Amerikan song constructionist who puzzles together his unique brand of vocal poetics with a sorted sonic DNA that exhibits strains of indie, electro, folk, IDM and hip-hop.

"Sharon Van Etten plays bittersweet neofolk so slow, spare and subtle that you might have to crane your neck to hear it. The Brooklyn songsmith’s tunes are definitely worth the effort." - Time Out New York

///The Oxford Collapse have announced that their new album, Bits, will be hitting store shelves August 5th via Sup Pop. In the mean time you can catch the band at the Empty Bottle June 12th. [Thanks, NME]

///Speaking of August 5th, She and Him, featuring M. Ward and Zooey Deschanel, will be hitting the road in July and August. You can catch the duo in Chicago at Park West on August 5th. [Thanks, Aversion]

///Dan Deacon is up to something. And by that we mean he is currently working on a new album that is more mature, darker, and organic. The forthcoming album, Bromst, will be released via Carpark Records in the fall. The P-Fork has an interview.

05/28/2008

On May 17th Andrew Bird and his band, comprising Martin Dosh and Jeremy Ylvisaker, played a mostly unknown about show on the grounds of the University of Chicago in Hyde Park. The set featured songs from his most recent "Soldier On" EP.

///Sigur Ros have announced their new album, which will appropriately be titled Med sud i eyrum vid spilum endalaust. Look for it July first via XL. [Thanks, Aversion]

///The Smashing Pumpkins have been around for most of my short life and they are celebrating with a 20th anniversery/birthday party/tour. Details are still on their way, but look out Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles. [Thanks, PunkNews]

05/27/2008

Hopefully everyone enjoyed their Memorial Day weekend, with the 80 degree weather and sunshine. Hopefully no one wanted that nice of weather today. On to the news!

///The Cure had talked about making their next album a double album, but the band has since decided to cut back. The as of yet untitled album will be released on September 13th via Geffen/Universal. [Thanks, Aversion]

///For any graduate students out their, remember all you really need to do is find yourself famous. This business of dissertations, papers, research, and classes are all bunk. Paul McCartney and Yale continue to prove such a theory. McCartney recently received his honorary doctorate in music from the excellent academic institution. [Thanks, BrooklynVegan]

///The Magnetic Fields newest record, Distortion, will finally be made available on vinyl. But, you still need to wait until June 24th to get your hands on the piece of wax. [Thanks, Consequence of Sound]

05/23/2008

Thanks to everyone for coming out to the Burlington last night...if you weren't able to make it out, here's a little Bangers & Mash sampler to download as a weekend travel mix. Enjoy the long weekend and happy trails!

05/22/2008

I wasn’t quite so sure about seeing Liars, mainly because I don’t even own their latest self-titled release from 2007. The songs I’ve heard from that sound like they’ve lost something quite frankly…as if they’ve sacrificed some of their edge to be thought of as more of a slicker and more accessible pop band (relatively, people. I’m not going to compare Angus to Prince or Michael Jackson any time in this millennium.) Still, due to Reggie’s more intimate size, I felt that there was the definite potential for this to be a great show and I was right…Angus was the tour de force I remembered…speeding ahead in a perfect glory and holding nothing back.

///RFC's Brad and Jeremy (aka "Bangers and Mash") are back to spin at The Burlington tonight at 10p. C'mon, even if you don't have tomorrow off, it's not like you're going to get anything done at work tomorrow anyway...so come out and stay late.

///The top news on NME this morning is that The Red Hot Chili Peppers have (gasp!) disbanded. I'm hoping that even a lot of their fans realize that this news was long overdue.

05/21/2008

This Saturday, Radio Free Chicago presents femme new wave sensations The Long Blondes at the Logan Square Auditorium and we've got your hook up for free admission and a copy of their latest CD, Couples.

To enter, just drop us a line to radiofreechicago(at)gmail.com with "Blonde Ambition" in the subject line. A winner will be drawn at random at the end of the week...good luck!

///For those of you who buy some music from Napster, you will no longer have to worry about DRM. The music pioneer-cum-boring music store also raised the pit rate to 256kpbs. [Thanks, Aversion]

///The Specials have resolved some of their differences for a reunion show of some sorts as early as October. Currently it seems as if the reunion will only be in theatre-sized venues in the U.K. with songs off of their 1st and 2nd albums. [Thanks, Billboard]

///While you continue to plan your fall, Xiu Xiu will be playing at the Bottom Lounge on September 3rd in support of the album Women as Lovers, which came out in January of this year. [Thanks, BrooklynVegan]

05/20/2008

What a blissful night of heavenly Swedish musicians! Last Monday at Schubas was loveliness personified. Not only was it Sarah Assbring’s (El Perro Del Mar’s) triumphant return after way too many months away from Chicago (I swear I aged ten years just waiting for her to come back in these past 12 months…) but it was also a glimpse of some other Swedish musicians for many fans. The interest in Lykke Liwas definitely piqued as she was recommended by the Chicago Reader but Anna Ternheim had a subtle grace and beauty that drew many people in from even neighboring cities who jumped at the chance to see the Swedish beauty in such a perfectly intimate setting.